Los Angeles daily herald., 1887-09-01
Labor wanted.

larly in South California, there is no
room for any one short of a million
aire, or, at least, for one whose bank
account shows up with at least five
figures. Passing over for the time the
proposition that our farm and fruit
lands offer the most fattering induce
ments to men of rather meagre
means, and that there are openings
simply superb here and in every
other city and town in the section for
good business men with even small
capital to lay the foundations of enter
prises which may be built up into
very large proportions; and confining
the present discussion to the wage
winning class and to those subdivis-
ions of laborers not usually consid-
cred skilled, it can be made plain that
the mcst humble toiler, male or fe-
male, will find more ready employ
ment, better remuneration and an
easier life in California, in South Cali
fornia, and in Los Angeles particu-
larly, than in any State or section Of
the Union.
These propositions are meant to
apply to workers, to those who know
how to do something and who are not
afraiI to bend their backs or soil their
hands. We met yesterday, on the
street a hotel keeper from neighbor-
ing town. He had been in the city
on Tuesday to employ few walters
| for his establishment. He took two
men home with him that night, put
them to work, but was obliged to re-
turn with them yesterday and look up
others who could and would perform
their simple duties in a better manner.
He states that it is almost impossible
to secure walters who know how to
take an order and fill it with approx
innate accuracy, and in an attentive
and courteous manner. Last week
while visiting a ranch we saw team
of horses hitched to carriage by a
man who had been considered the
best on the place for two years; but
SO clumsily and defectively had the
simple duties been performed that
had the animals not been gentle
serious accident would have
ensued. The lines were buckled
on inside out, and they had not been
run through any of the rings between
the two horses. The man has been
paid $50 month, winter and sum-
mer, with the privilege of garden, a
house to live in and all the fruit he
wanted. He, moreover got all his
wood off the place. The walters get
probably $40 per month and "found."
While it may be most desirable that
these toilers should get twice as much
remuneration for the simple services
demanded OF them, and while we
should be glad to see them get three
times the sums named yet the fact is
that this is more than is paid for SINH
lar services in any other State in the
Union. But that is somewhat wide OF
the point. While the wages are much
better than the average Of the coun-
try, the point made is that good serv-
ice cannot be obtained for any price.
The man was in no wise competent to
occupy the place of principal hand on a
ranch, and better qualified men
are very hard to find. The
walters could not have done
their duties had they been paid $5 per
day for their services.
Outside of California hotels in small
country places such as is the one here
in mind, are served by girls. To them
at the East half the wages named
above would be more than satisfac-
tory. 1t is far from being our desire
to lower the rewards of labor-mea-
gre at the best. But we wish to see
men engaged in industrial enterprises
hereabouts, whether it be the prim-
tive vocation OF tilling the soil, or the
more modern and complex one oi
catering to the pampered tastes Of a
luxurious people able to secure more
competent help. Could the facts III
the case be laid before the eyes of ten
thousand girls east OF the great back
bone of the continent who went to bed
last night-if not positively supperless,
at least far from surfeited with toe
much; and who rise this morning
anxiously scanning sky void of any
cloud likely to rain blessing in the
shape of employment or its rewards
upon them whether they be just Oh
unjust, the knowledge so conveyed
would cause an earnest longing to
reach this golden land of promise
Could few thousand of these get
here the benefit to the industries oi
our section would be quite as great as
would those to accrue to the persons
thus induced to exchange idleness
with penury for employment with
plenty.
Nor is this all. To-day with such a
cry from all parts of the world for the
delicious fruits of California, there
are thousands of tons, worth hundreds
of thousands of dollars, dropping from
the trees and rotting in the sun-and